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Entercom Launches Alt 98.7

Part of the problem is that the roots of alternative were about discovery. In a different media environment. It's very hard to find "consensus" stars in a format that in history and attitude was literally opposing the mainstream and taking risks radio can't afford to take in 2020 on a commercial level.
And at a time when advertisers don't view a relatively small, but young, musically adventurous, largely male audience as an opportunity to pitch products to fresh ears but as a cynical bunch who dislike advertising in general and will tune out their messages, generally not being worth the financial outlay to reach, especially when women 25-44 are much more vulnerable to a well-crafted campaign.
 
It's very hard to find "consensus" stars in a format that in history and attitude was literally opposing the mainstream and taking risks radio can't afford to take in 2020 on a commercial level.

The only risks radio can't afford to take is play bad music that has indecent language in it.
 
Sounds like all rap music.
Actually, most of the current crop is called "hip hop" (with or without a hypen") and a lot of it is very good. Keep in mind that much of hip hop reflects urban or Black culture and values, and the use of language and its underlying meaning is different between cultures. Condemning one of the dominant music forms of persons of color is, of itself, racist.
 
The dumpster fire known as Alt 98.7 pulled a 1.8 share in the just released January numbers. Good for a tie for 20th place overall. Lowest rated FM station with full market coverage (excluding ultra niche 103.5 WMUZ, which does not subscribe).

Krissy T's decision to abruptly quit New Country 93-1's morning show definitely seems to be hurting that station.
 
Nope, but ditching that format was a moronic move.

How does Mike Kaplan still have a job??? The majority of the stations under his purview have less than a 2 share and several are barely above a 1 share. He has destroyed heritage alt station 107.7 The End in Seattle, a station that just a year ago had fantastic ratings! Does have he incriminating photos of David Field or something?
 
He has destroyed heritage alt station 107.7 The End in Seattle, a station that just a year ago had fantastic ratings!

I wouldn't put it that way. If you look at the bigger picture, the music and presentation ceased to be as commercially viable as it had been, and the audience has transitioned to a more appropriate non-commercial station. That may happen in more markets.
 
I wouldn't put it that way. If you look at the bigger picture, the music and presentation ceased to be as commercially viable as it had been, and the audience has transitioned to a more appropriate non-commercial station. That may happen in more markets.
Wait, so a station that was consistently earning over a 4 share, and was almost always top five in all of its target demos, is not as commercially viable as a presentation that was struggling to earn a 2 share in the corporate template markets (LA, NY)?

Sure, Seattle is not LA or NY, but a presentation that earns the horrible ratings as those two get should NOT serve as a template to base all of their stations nationwide on.
 
Wait, so a station that was consistently earning over a 4 share, and was almost always top five in all of its target demos, is not as commercially viable as a presentation that was struggling to earn a 2 share in the corporate template markets (LA, NY)?

Sure, Seattle is not LA or NY, but a presentation that earns the horrible ratings as those two get should NOT serve as a template to base all of their stations nationwide on.
TheBigA desperately wants his prophecy of rock being dead to be true (even with pop-punk showing strong signs of revival) and he's going to purposefully skew his arguments (and carry Entercom's water) to support that notion even with evidence staring at him point-blank in the face. I bet KPNT, one of the heaviest Alternatives in the country, scoring a 7.1 in St. Louis is insignificant to him as well.

Entercom's experiment is NOT working and has derailed a good many stations. I am sure the strategy has saved money in the short-term but it has come at catastrophic cost to long-term profits. Ironically Entercom's failures with regionalization/nationalization will do more to kill alternative pop (which is what Entercom is betting heavily on) than cause any harm to alt-rock or rock in general.
 
TheBigA desperately wants his prophecy of rock being dead to be true

Huh? You completely misread my post. The success of KEXP doesn't show that rock is dead. On the contrary, it shows that a non-commercial presentation of the alternative format is preferable to that audience. KEXP is a fantastic resource for the people of Seattle. The combination of a non-commercial radio station with a state of the art live venue is how music should be presented in the internet age. I've been an advocate for this station for years.
 
It appears you know quite a bit about the Seattle radio scene. In your opinion, why do you believe so many listeners abandoned or greatly reduced listening to 107.7 The End en masse within a fairly quick period of time? Something must've triggered that.

I suspect Entercom's ill-advised programming moves have plenty to do with it.

Of note, Mr. Kaplan's name was conspicuously absent from this press release:
https://news.****************/artic...ils-Enhanced-Programming-Leadership-Structure

Am I reading too much into that? Perhaps. Cannot find any web page that names all Entercom programming SVP's, so I am unsure if the names identified in the above press release are all-inclusive.

Not sure I'd label KEXP "rock," but it is certainly a great radio station that does play some rock product. No argument from me about it being an outstanding resource. Of course, rock radio is plenty alive in Seattle...look no further than Rock 99.9 KISW. :)
 
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Down to a 1.6 share. Sad.

This low budget format is just a placeholder for the inevitable transition of WWJ Newsradio to FM, I suspect. Unfortunately, we might be stuck with this white elephant for another few years.

For most stations, cume is still 30% to 35% off from pre-COVID levels. Some stations (such as WYCD) are off 40%.
 
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